LIMINAL ANIMALS

Ulver's sporadic release of singles over the course of 2024, indicative of the group's desire to expand upon the more accessible side of their music, ultimately culminated with the release of the group's thirteenth studio album titled 'Liminal Animals', released through House of Mythology. The Norwegian experimental group has become synonymous with unpredictability, having redefined themselves several times over the course of their career, yet this new album by the Kristoffer Rygg-led band continues the string of synthpop albums that has been going on for some years now. Following the excellent and expansive 'The Assassination of Julius Caesar' from 2017, an album that had certainly caught many by surprise and gradually became a fan-favorite, Ulver went further into this direction with 2020's 'Flowers of Evil', a more accessible album that was somewhat strangely uneventful, and followed by an even more disappointing releases - 2021's 'Scary Muzak', an experimental electronic album that resembled the soundtrack of a spooky videogame.

And in this context, 2024's 'Liminal Animals' stands as quite the daring and experimental offering, a solid return to form that is only outwardly informed by these preceding albums. In reality, this nine-track release has a distinct personality of its own that might really remind someone of 'Flowers of Evil', but unlike the former, 'Liminal Animals' is incredibly consistent and far more risky. What we have here is a collection of melodic and laid-back pieces that are drenched in this lush, nocturnal and occasionally sensual wave of synth-pop soundscapes, with the music often approaching ambient, jazzy textures. The upfront synths and all the programming definitely provide the backbone of this album's sonic palette, but 'Liminal Animals' is also quite rich in percussive effects, string arrangements, hefty bass notes, and elegant guitars that softly pervade the sonic space of many of the songs on here. So there really is a bit of everything - as predictable as one might initially find this record to be, it is actually very diverse and versatile. It has both the soothing catchiness of 'Flowers of Evil' as well as the sonic tightness of 'The Assassination...'. Some of the great tracks on here definitely are 'A City in the Skies', 'Forgive Us' and 'The Red Light', with that nocturnal, dark and sorrowful mood, the two 'Nocturnes', instrumental pieces that are really effective, as well as the moody, spacey and almost Floyd-ish closing track 'Helian (Trakl)' and its eleven minutes of cold, electronic wasteland soundscapes.

Some fans have been critical of Ulver going further down the synthpop road - some have been fascinated by the artistic challenges that this poses, so if you are keen on Depeche Mode, Talk Talk, and indie synthwave soundscapes, then this might as well be your new favorite album!